Term
| How do people feel about coyote? |
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Definition
| some see them as reward of nature; others are afraid; sportsman hate them because they kill too many animals; farmers lose livestock |
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Term
| What are other names for the coyote? |
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Definition
| brush wolf; prairie wolf; coy-dog; eastern coyote |
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Term
| What is the scientific name for the coyote? |
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Definition
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Term
| Where is the eastern coyote found? |
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Definition
| northeastern United States; southeastern Canada |
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Term
| What are the coyotes ancestors? |
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Definition
| breeding between gray wolves and coyotes |
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Term
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Definition
| hybridization between coyote and wolf |
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Term
| Who is the western cousin? |
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Definition
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Term
| How is the eastern coyote different than the western coyote? (5) |
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Definition
| different behavior; habitat use; pelt coloration; prey preferences; home range sizes |
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Term
| What size canine is the eastern coyote? |
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Definition
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Term
| How long has eastern coyote been in eastern north America, according to fossil records? |
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Definition
| since Pleistocene era; a million years ago |
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Term
| How long has this animal been common? |
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Definition
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Term
| True or False: People may have confused the wolf with the coyote in the early 1900s. |
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Definition
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Term
| True or False: the first coyote identified as an animal similar to what is the Eastern Coyote was killed in 1940. |
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Definition
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Term
| In the late 1960s, what happened to the coyote population? |
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Definition
| Influx of coyotes from the Catskill Mountains in NY entered northern PA, where they spread south |
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Term
| In the 1970s, where were the most coyotes? |
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Definition
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Term
| When did coyotes occupy the entire state? |
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Definition
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Term
| Is the eastern coyote larger or smaller than the western? |
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Definition
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Term
| How much do adult males weigh? |
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Definition
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Term
| How much do females weigh? |
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Definition
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Term
| How much were heaviest male and female? |
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Definition
Male: 62 pounds
female: 42 pounds |
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Term
| What are the pelage colors? |
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Definition
| range from light blond, reddish blond, gray to dark brown washed with black, and black; most are gray |
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Term
| What dog do coyote coloring resemble? |
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Definition
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Term
| Describe coyote legs, cheeks, ears, tail and eyes |
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Definition
legs:gray, tan, reddish with black markings or lines on front legs
cheeks:reddish (also behind ears)
ears: erect
tail: bottle brush
eyes: normally yellow, but some are brown |
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Term
| Coyotes are monogamous. What does this mean? |
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Definition
| they keep the same mate every year |
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Term
| What is the social unit of the coyote? |
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Definition
| the parents and offspring |
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Term
| Do coyotes have extended families? |
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Definition
| Yes, a group may consist of a pair of adults, transients (aged 6 - 18 months, predispersing sub-adults (less than a year), and non-breeding associates |
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Term
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Definition
| Yes; coyotes living in a territory may provide food for a growing litter |
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Term
| How old are females when they breed? |
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Definition
| females usually breed their second winter; some have bred earlier |
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Term
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Definition
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Term
| How large are the litters? |
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Definition
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Term
| Why are litters so large? |
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Definition
| coyotes compensate for high mortality rate by having larger litters (many pups die) |
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Term
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Definition
| beneath overturned trees; piles of tree stumps; rock dens; dug out red fox dens; southerly exposures |
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Term
| Why are pups moved frequently? |
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
| during October, when they are 6 months old |
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Term
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Definition
| 30-50 miles is common, but can be up to 100 miles |
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Term
| How do coyotes communicate and why? |
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Definition
yips, barks and howls
sometimes to assemble into larger packs |
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Term
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Definition
| sometimes in a pack; other times alone; sometimes with one or two others; often during daylight hours (morning preferred) |
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Term
| When does most howling take place? |
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Definition
| at any time, but mostly at night |
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Term
| What senses are the most keen? |
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Definition
| smell, hearing, alertness |
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Term
| The coyote has adapted to a wide variety of habitats. Where are they found? |
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Definition
| heavily forested northeast and northcentral areas; dairy and cropland; even around heavily populated areas like Philadelphia and Harrisburg |
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Term
| What habitat is preferred? |
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Definition
| brushy cover, such as clearcuts; often live along edges between forests and agricultural areas where prey is abundant |
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Term
| What is the main food in the coyote diet? |
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Definition
| wide variety; small mammals (mice, voles); deer is the dominant food; large number of deer die in roads, from starvation, and other dead deer |
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Term
| Besides deer, what do coyotes eat? |
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Definition
| wide variety; small mammals (mice, voles);rabbits and woodchucks; birds; plants; fruits |
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Term
| What livestock do coyotes eat? |
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Definition
| sheep, chickens, ducks, goats and domestic rabbits; can be significant in certain areas |
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Term
| Where are coyotes most common? |
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Definition
| although found throughout PA, most common in the northern half |
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Term
| What was the total population in 1995? |
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Definition
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Term
| What about people hunting coyotes? |
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Definition
| the 'harvest' in the early 1990s was about 6000; incidental to turkey, bear and deer hunting; coyotes are also trapped |
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Term
| What is the trend for coyote populations? |
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Definition
| continue to expand, despite man's attempt to control them |
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